Main Points
- A nationwide high temperature warning for the Republic has been extended into Saturday
- Met Éireann says daytime temperatures could top 30 degrees on Thursday
- The heat dome has pushed temperatures above 40 degrees in parts of western Europe this week
- Met Éireann has issued a status yellow thunderstorm warning for Connacht and Donegal from 3pm on Thursday until 6pm on Friday
- France recorded its hottest day ever on Wednesday, surpassing a record set only the day before
- Are you Irish living in Europe? You can share your experiences of hot weather by using the form here
Key Reads
- Why is it so hot and when will Ireland’s ‘exceptionally warm weather’ end?
- From sunscreen to staying cool: how to keep yourself and your family safe in the heat
- ‘Bathers should take care’: Swimmers advised to avoid some spots in Dublin due to rainfall
- In pictures: Europe swelters in heat dome
Young boy found dead in car in France
A three-year-old boy has died after becoming trapped in a car in the Paris region in extreme heat, AFP is reporting.
The boy had gone into the family car while his father thought he was napping, then found himself unable to get out as the child lock was activated, a prosecutor said.
The tragic incident happened in the town of Saint-Gratien.
The mother was having a nap with the couple’s second child, an 18-month-old, while the father was working in a shed in the garden, according to the report. - The Guardian
Road users urged to slow down amid thunderstorm warning
The Road Safety Authority (RSA) is advising road users to take extra care, as Met Éireann has issued a status yellow warning for thunderstorms, with the risk of torrential downpours and localised flooding.
The warning will be in place for Donegal, Galway, Leitrim, Mayo, Roscommon and Sligo from 3pm today until 6pm tomorrow.
The RSA has issued the following advice to motorists:
- Slow down and allow a greater braking distance between you and the vehicle in front in wet weather conditions; this is especially important on high-speed roads such as dual carriageways and motorways
- Take special care when driving behind goods vehicles as they generate a considerable amount of spray, reducing visibility
- If the road ahead is flooded, choose another route; do not attempt to drive through it
- After driving through water, drive slowly with your foot lightly on the brake pedal for a short distance to help dry the brakes
- Drive with dipped headlights at all times
Advice for pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists and e-scooter users:
- Walk on the right-hand side of the road, facing traffic, if there are no footpaths
- Cyclists should ensure that they and their bikes are visible by using front and rear lights (white at the front, red at the back) and wearing bright or high-visibility clothing
‘Significant disruption’ expected in UK as extreme heat warning extended
The UK Met Office has extended a red extreme heat warning until 9pm on Friday with temperatures of up to 38 degrees expected in the east and southeast of the country.
“The exceptional spell of hot and humid weather will continue across this region, with impacts to the general population highly likely,” the Met Office said.
“The heat will be accompanied by high humidity, exacerbating the potential for discomfort and health impacts, with very warm and humid night times also reducing the ability for people to recover overnight.
“Significant disruption to daily life is likely and the public should take every effort to make precautions and adapt their daily routines where possible to cope with these levels of heat, which up to now have been extremely rare for the UK.”
Water conservation tips
Uisce Éireann has issued water-conservation tips for people.
Here are some ways you can conserve water as the hot spell continues:
- Drop the hose: Use a rose-head watering can instead of a hose or sprinkler; aim for the roots; water plants early or late in the day to limit evaporation
- Take short showers instead of a bath: Reducing your shower time can save up to 10 litres of water per minute - a typical bath uses 80 litres
- Turn off the tap: Not running water while brushing your teeth or shaving can save up to six litres a minute; keep a jug of water in the fridge for drinks
- Fill up your appliances: Only run your washing machine and dishwasher when they have a full load
More conservation tips can be read here.
Soldiers died at the Curragh during heatwave 139 years ago
Ireland is bracing for the hottest day of 2026, possibly smashing an almost 140-year record.
The highest temperature recorded in the Republic was in Kilkenny in 1887 when the dial reached 33.3 degrees.
While we wait to see if that record is broken, let’s take a look at some of our coverage from 139 years ago.
A report from The Irish Times on https://epaper.irishtimes.com/titles/irishtimes/5088/publications/12463/pages/4, said soldiers at the Curragh in Co Kildare died from sunstroke.
“For want of rain every kind of crop appears to have its growth arrested,” the article noted.
“Hay and oats are extremely stunted, and as for pasture it seems to have disappeared from all but the low-lying districts. Cattle are half-mad from the scarcity of water.
“At the Camp the soldiers, too, suffer dreadfully in weather like this.”
Thunderstorm warning issued for Connacht and Donegal
Met Éireann has issued a status yellow thunderstorm warning for Connacht and Donegal.
The warning will be in effect from 3pm on Thursday until 6pm on Friday. It applies to Donegal, Sligo, Galway, Leitrim, Mayo and Roscommon.
Possible impacts include a risk of torrential downpours, localised flooding, lightning damage, hail, hazardous driving conditions and gusty winds.
France breaks hottest temperature record *again*
France recorded its hottest day on Wednesday, surpassing a record set only the day before.
The national temperature indicator, which averages day and night temperatures, reached 30 degrees, exceeding previous peaks set in July 2019 and August 2023.
“We are in the midst of a historic heatwave,” Benoît Thomé, director of institutional relations at Météo-France, told Le Monde.
The severity of this hot spell, significantly worsened by human-driven climate change, is “exceptional”, he said, and “at least equivalent to that of 2003”, when 15,000 people died in France.
‘This is what climate crisis looks like, and it’s just getting started’
Simon Stiell, the UN climate chief, warned that “Europe’s savage heatwave has the fingerprints of the climate crisis all over it” and is “the latest price to pay for fossil fuel pollution baking our planet”.
“Schools closing, the vulnerable dying, economies sweating: this is what the climate crisis looks like in practice, and it’s just getting started,” Stiell said.
“Until humanity stops burning colossal amounts of coal, oil and gas, extreme heat will keep getting worse, and other climate impacts – from mega-droughts, floods, wildfires and storms – will keep hammering every economy and population harder each year.
“With billions of households, businesses and all economies still feeling the heat of the latest fossil fuel cost chaos, and thousands dying in a single day in some regions as temperatures soar, stronger climate actions can’t wait.
“The solutions are equally clear: a faster shift to renewables – which are now much cheaper than fossil fuels – as well as protecting forests and boosting climate resilience. Many countries need support to embrace clean energy and protect their peoples. There’s no time to lose.” - The Guardian
Met Éireann has warned there will be “very high concentrations of grass pollen” today and in the coming days.
Event on impacts of extreme heat cancelled ... due to extreme heat
An event dedicated to discussing the impacts of extreme heat was cancelled at the London School of Economics on Wednesday because the venue was too hot.
The meeting was organised as part of London Climate Action Week.
The event was due to have been held in a near-100-year-old building that, like many in Britain, relies on natural ventilation and fans to cool visitors rather than air conditioning. The organisers said they called it off due to a risk to public health.
Chris Anderson, a climate expert at non-profit Practical Action, said the cancellation was a stark reminder that the dangers of a warming planet would impact everyone.
“There’s a real irony that an event designed to help vulnerable people adapt to extreme heat in a temperate, wealthy country had to be cancelled,” Anderson said. - Reuters
Heat hazard declared for Austrian Grand Prix weekend
Formula One’s governing body declared a heat hazard for the Austrian Grand Prix at Spielberg’s Red Bull Ring this weekend, the first time this season the designation has been used.
Race director Rui Marques said the official weather service forecast temperatures in excess of 31 degrees.
Declaring a heat hazard requires teams to fit a driver cooling system, such as a liquid-cooled vest, though drivers are not obliged to use them and can take a ballast penalty instead.
The car’s minimum weight is increased to accommodate the hardware.
Last October’s Singapore Grand Prix was the first time the heat hazard designation was applied after it was added to the rules in 2025, followed by the US Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, the same month.
Sunday’s race will be the eighth round of the championship, with 19-year-old Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli at the top of the standings. - Reuters
Heatwave linked to 212 deaths in Spain
The heatwave is linked to 212 deaths in Spain between Sunday and Wednesday, according to estimates from a public institute, AFP is reporting.
The MoMo monitoring system compiles daily death statistics in Spain and calculates the difference in mortality by comparing them with the levels foreseeable based on historical records.
Air conditioner sales spike in Europe
As Europe sweats through record-breaking temperatures, Asian makers of air conditioners, such as South Korea’s Samsung Electronics, China’s Midea and Japan’s Mitsubishi Electric, are enjoying a boom in sales.
Air conditioning is common throughout buildings, transport and homes in major cities across Asia, but it is rare in Europe and people are struggling to stay cool as searing heat claims lives, disrupts power supplies and shuts schools.
Seeking respite from the sizzling weather, people and companies across Europe are snapping up portable and fixed air conditioners as some countries warn the heatwave could intensify.
“With temperatures expected to rise further from June onward, we expect sustained demand through the peak cooling season,” Samsung Electronics said in a statement.
Key markets, including Italy, Spain and France, generated double-digit sales growth in the first half of this year, it added. - Reuters
Public warned of dangers of swimming in reservoirs
As high temperatures continue, ESB has issued a warning about the dangers of swimming in reservoirs and watercourses.
Henry Bouchier, ESB’s manager of hydro operations, said: “It is important that people take note of the safety warnings which are visible on signs posted around ESB reservoirs.
“These areas are unsafe for swimming due to deep, fast-flowing waters, fluctuating water levels, and uneven terrain, which present significant hazards to the public.”
These waters include ESB reservoirs at the following locations:
- Poulaphouca in Co Wicklow
- Golden Falls and Leixlip in Co Kildare
- Inniscarra and Carrigadrohid in Co Cork
- The Ardnacrusha headrace and tailrace canal in Co Clare
- Assaroe, Lough Nacung and Lough Dunlewey in Co Donegal
High temperature warning extended into Saturday
A nationwide high temperature warning for the Republic has been extended into Saturday.
The status yellow warning came into effect at noon on Tuesday and was originally due to expire at 9am on Friday.
Met Éireann has now extended the warning until 9am on Saturday.
72 departments in France are under red heat alerts
The intense heatwave is hitting Europe earlier than usual, underscoring how climate change is reshaping summers.
France has been the epicentre of the heatwave for more than a week, with daytime highs reaching 43.8 in Palluau in the west on Wednesday.
Paris mayor Emmanuel Grégoire said hundreds of air conditioners are being delivered to schools in the French capital. The heat is also becoming a critical issue for nursing homes, as not all rooms have air conditioning, Zaynab Riet, executive director of the French Hospital Federation, told France Inter radio station on Thursday.
The heatwave, driven by a high-pressure heat dome and atmospheric shifts from a developing El Niño, has led to widespread public health warnings. A record 72 departments in France are under red heat alerts, with similar warnings in effect in the UK, Germany, and Switzerland.
Temperatures in Paris are forecast to reach 41 degrees on Thursday, with 36 degrees possible in London on Friday, according to forecasters. Daytime highs in Frankfurt are set to top 40 degrees on Friday, according to weather models from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts.
The extreme heat is forecast to ease this weekend, but unusually warm temperatures are likely to linger throughout next week. - Bloomberg
London unveils first ‘heat plan’
The mayor of London has unveiled the city’s first heat plan to keep Londoners safe during increasingly frequent heatwaves.
Expanding access to public drinking water and blue spaces – outdoor environments that prominently feature water – are among the priority areas of focus set out in the plan, entitled Heat Ready London.
Sadiq Khan said he hopes it will help tackle the “huge obstacles” the city faces with rising temperatures.
It comes as the UK swelters in exceptional heat as the hottest June day was recorded, with provisional temperatures reaching 36.1 degrees in Hampshire on Wednesday.
Heat Ready London focuses on six key sectors: the built environment, business and economy, emergency preparedness, resilience and response, health and care, green space and nature, and infrastructure.
The plan sets out a series of objectives, which includes protecting Londoners from the health impacts of rising temperatures and prioritising vulnerable people in high-risk areas. – PA
Check in on elderly neighbours
Holly O’Neill, a meteorologist with Met Éireann, said the current high temperatures are being caused by “a plume of hot air coming in off the Continent”.
Speaking on Newstalk Breakfast, O’Neill said it would be difficult to pinpoint where exactly would experience the highest temperatures today but that it was likely to be in the midlands or Connacht, Vivienne Clarke reports.
Keith Leonard, chairperson of the National Emergency Coordination Group, told the same programme about the “common sense measures” people could use to help themselves and each other.
He said high temperatures can be “very enjoyable” but have “a disproportionately difficult effect for elderly people, infants and young people”.
Leonard encouraged people to check in on elderly neighbours or people living alone.
“Call in, check that they’re comfortable, that they’ve accessed cold drinks. A short visit could make a huge difference to the wellbeing of an elderly neighbour today.”
How to work (or get out of work) during the heatwave today
Many people will be stuck in the office today as temperatures are set to top 30 degrees.
In case you’re wondering if you have a legal right to stay home amid a heatwave, we have bad news.
“There’s no specific law” that mandates workplaces to close when temperatures reach a certain point, “but there is a legal obligation on employers to ensure the health and safety of their employees”, said Michael Doherty, a law professor at Maynooth University.
Working conditions during extreme weather events (a more common example in Ireland would be a storm) “are usually the subject of contracts or employee policies”, Doherty said, “so it’s difficult to find a law for these things as they’re so context specific”.
Read Stephen Conneely’s report here.
Are you Irish and in Europe? If so, how are you coping with the heat?
We would like to hear from people from Ireland living or travelling in parts of Europe impacted by extreme heat.
You can share your experiences by using the form here.
More high temperatures and thunderstorms expected on Friday
Meteorologist Gerry Murphy said even though the high temperature warning is due to end at 9am on Friday, tomorrow will be “very warm”.
He told Morning Ireland temperatures in the Dublin region could reach up to 31 degrees, Vivienne Clarke reports.
“So we’re looking at potential records today but it may turn out that in the east of the country we have near record temperatures tomorrow.”
Murphy said more widespread thunderstorms, especially across the west and north of the country, are expected tomorrow.
Why is it so hot and when will Ireland’s very warm weather end?
This is the second time this summer a prolonged heatwave has seized Europe. But behind this spike in temperatures is a “heat dome” hovering above the land mass, Stephen Conneely reports.
The phrase heat dome has only come into use relatively recently and “isn’t a traditional meteorological term”, according to Matthew Martin, a forecasting meteorologist at Met Éireann. He said it was commonly used “to refer to a slow moving area of high pressure” that “usually develops above large, continental areas”.
Martin explained that this high pressure builds over several days and restricts air from rising higher in the atmosphere, trapping and condensing heat closer to Earth’s surface. This is a double-edged sword, as air this close to the ground is unable to form clouds, allowing prolonged and direct sunlight to further heat the landscape.
Read the full explanation here.
Thunder and hail storms possible in the west
Meteorologist Gerry Murphy has warned there could be thunder and hail storms in the west as temperatures are set to be in the high 20s and over 30 degrees in parts of the midlands and Connacht, Vivienne Clarke reports.
There is the potential for the record high temperature to be challenged but it’s not certain to be broken, he told RTÉ Radio’s Morning Ireland.
“Temperatures yesterday in the west didn’t get up as high because there was a fair amount of clouds. So that means today is not starting from quite as high a base as it might be.
“And secondly, as we go through the day there are actually thunderstorms off the west coast at the moment and if the cloud moves in a bit more, further inland, and those thunderstorms begin to develop later that may keep a cap on the temperature.”
Murphy said thunderstorms in Connacht and Ulster may turn “significant ... because there is so much heat in the atmosphere”.
The Met Éireann meteorologist said it will be “a very hot day everywhere” and the cloud cover “will make temperatures feel more intense and humid”.
He advised people to be “very careful”, make sure they stay hydrated, wear sun cream and take care near bodies of water.
Soaring temperatures across Europe
Soaring temperatures in France, Italy, Spain and England and other countries in western Europe have put significant strain on tens of millions of people. One analysis estimated that close to 100 million people in Europe are facing temperatures of more than 35 degrees.
Temperatures climbed to 41 degrees in Nantes and surrounding areas in western France on Wednesday, with Paris experiencing similar highs. That left one-third of France’s administrative regions on notice for an elevated risk of forest fires due to the spiking temperatures, low humidity, winds and dry ground conditions.
Spain’s forecasting agency Aemet warned that parts of the country faced “significant danger” from the extraordinarily high temperatures, which surpassed 40 degrees in some northern regions.
High temperature warning still in place
A status yellow high temperature warning remains in place for Ireland. It came into effect at midday on Tuesday and will remain in place until 9am on Friday.
Met Éireann has said there will be maximum temperatures in excess of 27 degrees combined with night-time minima in excess of 15 degrees.
The potential impacts include water safety issues due to increased use of lakes and beaches; uncomfortable sleeping conditions; heat stress; and possible forest fires.
Ireland bracing for hottest day of 2026, possibly smashing 140-year record
The punishing heatwave that has swept across Europe, during which temperatures have climbed to unprecedented highs, is set to continue on Thursday.
Moreover, Ireland is bracing for the hottest day of 2026, possibly smashing a near 140-year record, Conor Pope and Jack Power report.
The highest temperature in Ireland yesterday was 27.9 degrees at Moore Park in Co Cork, followed by 27.7 degrees at Oak Park in Co Carlow. But Met Éireann’s Holly O’Neill warned a new heat record was possible today.
The highest temperature recorded in Ireland was in Kilkenny in 1877 when the dial reached 33.3 degrees. While Met Éireann’s predicted value range for today is between 25 and 31 degrees, it could go higher in the west and midlands.
“It is possible that we could see that temperature record being broken today,” said O’Neill. “It’s just a case of seeing how it develops throughout the day and whether or not we see those temperatures climb.”
